President Biden is aggressively Rolling Back the Agenda of Trump. But that doesn’t mean a few things won’t Survive.
Some of Trump's Agenda he is Keeping:
- The U.S. Space Force as well as the Artemis Spaceflight Program: The White House explicitly Committed to keeping the Space Force. Trump signed Legislation to establish the Space Force as the Sixth Military Branch at the end of 2019. The Concept is rooted in a Bipartisan Proposal made by House Lawmakers in 2017.
- The New Trade Deal with Canada and Mexico, which was Signed into Law by Trump early last year and Replaced a Trade Pact that Biden supported as a U.S. Senator: Biden is expected to take advantage of New Labor Enforcement Tools under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), which was Solidified months of Negotiations and Represents another rare Bipartisan Legislative accomplishment of the previous Administration.
The Administration is moving from America First Trade Policy to a Trade Policy that is going to be built much more in Consultation with Allies. There is going to be a lot more Effort to Work with Allies more closely on Economic and Trade Policy.
- The Abraham Accords, a Deal brokered by the previous Administration. It Reestablished Diplomatic Relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Morocco, and the Biden administration has suggested it is looking to build on them. “Then-candidate Biden made no bones about coming out and saying, ‘I think this is a good thing. I think this is a positive thing.’ And he's said consistently over the course of the last several months, that he would like to carry forward this initiative,” Biden National Security Advisor, Jake Sullivan, said last month.
Dennis Ross, a Veteran Diplomat who served on President Obama’s National Security Council, said that while Biden Officials have Supported the Agreements, it remains to be seen whether the New Administration will take an Active or Passive Role in trying to Build on them. “My hope is that it will be an active effort to build on them,” said Ross, who argued that Future Agreements would be more likely to Succeed with Consistent American Engagement.
- Partially Rollback the Tax Cuts Passed under Trump, though he has Not taken concrete Steps yet to do so.
- The First Step Act, which Reduced Sentences for Drug Offenses and Enabled an Earlier Release for some serving time.
- Embraced the idea of a Tough Stance toward China but the New Administration has laid out an Approach that will Focus on Competition and move away from Trump’s more Confrontational Tactics. The new administration is undertaking a sweeping review of Trump-era economic and foreign policy decisions, including reviewing the “phase one” trade deal negotiated between the U.S. and China and the remaining tariffs that are in place on Chinese goods.
Some believe Biden will Keep the Tariffs in place for the time being and use them as a Bargaining Chip to Extract a Concession out of China, but ultimately Lift them. Biden would be more likely to move Quickly to Undo Trump’s Tariffs on European Goods.
The most Striking thing is how Deliberate and Patient they are being on the China Trade Front. They are moving very Slowly and Deliberately to Review Options on China Trade, not moving Quickly to Undo the Trump Record. Still, in some Cases the Biden White House may look to Build upon some of Trump’s Actions when it comes to Foreign Policy.
But the Overall Message from Biden on Engaging with other Countries has been a Reversal from the Trump era. Biden has sought to assure the Global Community of his Commitment to Alliances and Signal that Decisions will be made in Consultation with Partners and Not impulsively.
NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote! Michael H. Drucker
